Saturday, June 30, 2012

Darren Wiens has created a quick demo of the new Symbols feature in the Google Maps API.

Hinton Nordic Centre Ski Trails uses an arrow symbol and animates the arrows along a polyline. The polyline is shown on top of a custom overlay map of the Hinton Nordic Centre. The animated arrows are used to show the direction of the actual ski trail.

Symbols can be one of 5 predefined shapes or you can use SVG path notation to create your own symbols. Here's an example I made of symbols made with SVG path notation. This map includes symbols in the shape of the six states and territories that make up Australia.

You can add event listeners to symbols. In this example I included a tooltip to name each state (mouse-over a state to reveal its name). I could also have added a listener to open an information window when each state symbol was clicked.

If you zoom the map the state symbols will stay the same size - so the symbol will become relatively bigger or smaller than Australia on the map. I could add an event to rescale the symbol when the user zooms the map but I didn't in this example to emphasise how symbols act differently to map overlays.

The Google Crisis Response team has created a US Wildfires Map to provide information about the current wildfires in Colorado.

The map uses data from the U.S. Geological Survey and the state’s Division of Emergency Management to provide a number of layers that can be viewed on a Google Map. The layers includes Active Fire Perimeters, US Red Cross Shelters and recent (2012-06-28) satellite imagery.

The Representative Poetry Online (RPO) from the University of Toronto Libraries has created a Google Map called Places of Poems & Poets. The map allows users to search for places mentioned in the RPO poetry
collection. Users can also search for poets by birth place, death place
and residence.

The Poetry Atlas is a Google Map that is trying to geotag as
many poems as they can and also find poems for as much of the world as
possible. If you know about a poem that isn't on the map you can
e-mail it to Poetry Atlas and they will add it to the map.

Thursday, June 28, 2012

Google has added some new features to the Google Maps API to give developers more control over the look of their maps.

One of the most requested features I've heard for the Styled Maps feature in the Maps API is to be able to specify colors as an RGB value. You now can!

You can now also style the outline stroke of features separately from the interior fill, and the label text separately from any icon. So, for example, you could style all text labels on the map to have black outlines with a white fill.

Finally you can now also adjust the width of line features such as roads and rivers, and also the width of feature outlines.

If you want to get some hints for your own map styles check out the Styled Maps label for Google Maps Mania posts.

The new Symbols function and Heatmap Layer in the Google Maps API mean that it is now much easier for developers to create compelling map visualisations.

Both these features make it much easier for developers to add animations to maps. The result is that Google Maps can now beautifully render data both spatially and temporally.

This morning I've been playing with the new Heatmap Layer. The Blitz Map is an animated heat map of the bombs dropped on London on the first night of the London Blitz in the Second World War.

I've cheated a little with the timing on the map. At the moment the map just adds the bombs sequentially, step by step, and doesn't use a real time-frame. It should be simple however to add a real time-line to the map at a later date.

I have a feeling that the new Symbols feature in the Google Maps API is going to revolutionise online mapping.

I've been playing with it for only a couple of hours and I can already see loads of possibilities. Here is my first attempt at playing with the new Symbols feature (and the new Transit Layer). Press the two 'Take Off' buttons below the map to see how symbols can be made to animate along a polyline.

I'm sure many of you can do much better. If you've already started playing with the new features in the Google Maps API post a link to your examples in the comments below.

Google today announced at Google I/O some really exciting new features for the Google Maps API. The new features include a new Transit Layer, Symbols and new Google Places features for the Google Maps API.

You can now add symbols to a Google Map. At first this doesn't sound overly exciting but the new Symbols feature really opens some amazing new possibilities for online maps.

Symbols can be used like map markers. However symbols are vectors so they can be styled (e.g. stroke / fill / opacity). They are also dynamic so can be animated. For example you can change symbols to show changes in locations over time.

Symbols can also be added to polylines. So, for example, you can add arrowheads to a polyline. However, again because symbols are dynamic, they can be animated. So you can use symbols with polylines to show movement (e.g. animating a plane flight).

Check out this example with a polygon and an animated symbol to get an idea of what is now possible with the Google Maps API.

Transit Layer
Google Maps API developers can now also add a transit layer to their maps.
The transit layer allows you to show a transit network on your maps.

You can also add a routing feature so that users can get Transit directions and times.

If you download the latest version of Google Maps for Android you can now download huge areas to use offline.
In the latest version of Google Maps for Android you can save up to six large areas.

To save an area you need to navigate to the area you want to download and select 'Make available offline' from the menu. You are then shown the size of the file you want to download so that you know how much space it will take up on your phone.

In one month's time, on July 27th, just a mile down the road from where I now sit, the 2012 Olympic Games will begin.

Over the last five years I've watched as the Olympics Park has been built on an under-developed and run down part of my home town. Looking at the area now it is quite hard to remember what this area of the East End looked like just five years ago.

Luckily photographer Toby Smith has created a Google Map showcasing his photographs of the area taken in 2007. The Lea Valley Map places Toby's photos on top of Google Map's satellite imagery of the Olympic Park.

The contrast between the bleak landscapes portrayed in Toby's photographs and the shiny new stadiums in the satellite imagery helps to highlight the transformation of this area, whether if it's for the better or not.

This Guild Wars 2 WvW Map is a Google Map of the world of Tyria used in the massively multiplayer online role-playing game.

The map follows a now familiar pattern for online game maps, allowing the user to view important locations in the game using the Google Maps controls. The map allows users to view the locations of Towers, Keeps, Supply Camps, Spawns, Castles and Orbs.

One nice new feature introduced by the Guild Wars 2 WvW Map is the ability to add weapons to the map. When you add a siege equipment to the map the range of the weapon is also displayed which should greatly help players in planning their campaigns.

Google's annual developer-focused conference Google I/O starts today. A couple of Google Maps related talks are scheduled to be live streamed. I've posted the times and links below and also added a couple of Android related sessions that might also be interesting for Google Maps API developers.

Today's keynote session could also be worth watching as well to get a general idea of Google's overall plans.

Colorado Wreck Hunting is a Google Map that has been put together to help a group of friends hike to old plane crash sites in the mountains of Colorado.

The map shows the locations of crash sites in Colorado and can be searched by location, by individual plane and by military or civil crash sites. The map includes layers to also view the current weather and Flickr photos on the map.

Each marker contains a number of other options, including driving directions to the location and viewing the location in Google Earth.

Tuesday, June 26, 2012

The Google Street View car visited New Orleans in 2007, just two years after the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina. The Street View imagery on Google Maps helps to document the neighborhoods that were flattened by the floodwaters that broke the levees.

'Update Google Street View in New Orleans!' believe that the imagery, now five years old, is "out of date in a city that is continuously changing, demolishing, and rebuilding". The blog has published a series of photographs around New Orleans and are comparing them to the Street View imagery of the same locations to highlight how the city is being rebuilt.

I've used the photographs taken by Annalisa Kelly and Hunter King for the blog and created a little Street View App. The app lets you view the photographs superimposed on top of the Street View image. You can use the slide control to adjust the opacity of the new photographs to compare it with the Street View underneath.

Wajam is social search extension for your browser that gives you access to the knowledge of your friends when you search with Google, Bing, Yahoo, Amazon, Yelp, Trip Advisor, YouTube and Ebay.

After you install the search extension on your computer you can log-in with Facebook, Twitter or Google+ to get access to all your friends' social recommendations.

One really neat function of Wajam is that it shows places your friends have recommended on a Google Map. For example, if you are searching for a restaurant you can quickly visualise all the venues that your friends have recommended.

Google has decreed that there shall be no more work done today by releasing a new online LEGO building game. Build, created in partnership with LEGO, is a Chrome application that allows you to play with the world's largest LEGO set.

The application features a LEGO styled map of Australia. Users can choose plots on the Google Map and then use the LEGO set to create their own 3d buildings. Once you have selected a plot you can start building using a wide selection of LEGO bricks.

When you have finished your build you can publish your plot to the map and share a link to your creation with your friends by e-mail or by a Google+ account.

Popular Google Maps creation tool ikiMap is marking its two year anniversary by releasing a new version of its service.

As part of the new version release, developers of websites and mobile apps can now integrate
very easily with ikiMap through an API. OruxMaps, an app created to draw maps from mobile devices, has been the first site to use the ikiMap API. This means that any map created through this app can be seen directly on the internet through ikiMap.

As well as the release of the API ikiMap also has a brand new design. The new design includes tools that make it much easier to create and publish new maps. The new tools also allow users to manage all their maps from their profile. It is possible to decide how and when maps are published, or even limit the access to maps to your friends and clients through the privacy settings.

Monday, June 25, 2012

Trulia Local has today added a new feature that allows users to check out commute times in a number of U.S. cities.

Using the map house hunters can now check out how long it takes to commute to or from any location by public transit or by car. For example you can center the map on your place of work and find out all the areas within your choice of commute time.

A slider tool allows the user to adjust the time of the commute and it is possible to select either driving on public transit times. You can drag and drop the map marker to set the center point of your commute time request.

Everlater is an application that allows you to create your own travel journal and travel blog.

As you add entries to your everlater travel blog they are also added to a Google Map of your journey. The map includes markers for each journal entry and all the markers are connected by polylines to show the progression of your trip.

Everlater has an iPhone app which allows you to update your travel blog whilst you are on your travels. Your travel blog can include photos of your trip and you can also connect your everlater account to a Facebook account so that all your entries are also posted to your Facebook wall.

You can use the map to find your nearest festivals. When you click on a festival's marker you can find out the dates of the festival and click through and get details about tickets and the festival line-up from ChooseFest.

Festival Searcher is another Google Maps based guide to all of the music festivals taking place this summer.

The map markers are colour-coded by month so that you can get a quick overview of what festival is taking place when. I assume the size of the markers relates to the size of the festival displayed.

Télérama has produced a Google Maps guide to festivals taking
place in France this summer. As well as being able to view the
locations of all the festivals on Google Maps there is a comprehensive
guide with detailed previews.

It is possible to search the map
by location, type of music and by date. It is also possible to get
driving directions to any of the festivals and to view Street Views of
locations.

Roadtrip Mixtape allows you to create a play list for a road-trip containing only music by artists that are from the area you are traveling through. Drive through Boston and you might hear Aerosmith or Donna Summer. Drive through New Orleans
and you might hear Lil Wayne or Dr. John.

Saturday, June 23, 2012

Transloc has created a number of real-time bus tracking maps for universities in the U.S.. The University of Florida Transit map is good example of how Transloc use Google Maps to show the position of buses in and around a university campus.

The map shows the real-time location of buses with color-coded markers. The color of the marker indicates the route of the bus and the arrows show the buses current direction. Users can click on the bus markers to view the bus' destination.

It is also possible to select a bus route from the map sidebar to view the route on the map and the current position of all buses currently on that route.

The Tour de France starts next Saturday and Cycling the Alps has put together maps for each of the 20 stages of the race.

The route for each stage can be viewed on a Google Map. Once you select a route you can also choose to view the route's elevation profile and a 3d tour of the route using the Google Earth plugin. The 3d tour allows you to get a first person view of each stage, which is particularly impressive in those precipitous mountain stages of the race.

Friday, June 22, 2012

Google today released some good news for developers by slashing the charges that apply to the use of the Google Maps API.

The API charges only apply to the top 0.35% of sites regularly exceeding the published limits of 25,000 map loads every day for 90 consecutive days. These charges have now been lowered from $4 per 1,000 map loads to 50¢ per 1,000 map loads.

Google has also eliminated the previous distinction between Styled Maps and regular unstyled maps. The same usage limits and pricing now apply to applications using Styled Maps and the default Google Maps style.

The Google Maps API charges will still not apply to the vast majority of Google Maps API users. If your map does take off and starts to exceed the free 25,000 map loads a day Google will contact you to discuss your options. Your map will not stop working due to a sudden surge in popularity.

Non-profit organisations also remain unaffected by the Maps API usage limits and can apply for a free Maps API for Business license through the Google Earth Outreach grants program.

Using the map you can find your nearest carousel, amusement and theme park or even your nearest playground. Actually the name of this map is a little bit of a misnomer as there are many, many non-carousel related categories that you can add to this map.

If you look through the two drop-down menus, 'name brands and chain stores' and 'places of interest' you can find everything from McDonald's fast food restaurants to America's best hot dog stands.

The Endangered Languages Project is a new website from Google looking to foster an exchange of information related to languages around the world threatened with extinction.

There are currently around 7,000 languages surviving in the world but it is estimated that at least half of them will disappear entirely before the end of this century. The Endangered Languages Project uses Google Maps to show the locations where languages are at risk throughout the world.

If you click on a language listed on the map you can get further details about the language including YouTube samples of the language being spoken, references to the language in texts from Google Books and details about how many of the language's speakers survive and an assessment of the language's current vitality.

The Joy of Tech comic this week took an interesting look at Apple's dumping of Google Maps.

Those who have seen the beta version of Apple Maps so far have been largely unimpressed. Here is a sneak peek of an Apple Map from Jokideo.

Adam Smith has applied some magic to Google Maps that manages to blur the pixels in the map tiles to create Blurry Maps. When you zoom in on a location you can watch the normal Google Maps tiles turn into a pointillist version of the mapped location.

Thursday, June 21, 2012

SpoonerSpot allows users to map the important places in their life or, as SpoonerSpot say, practice 'geographic micro-blogging'. Using the application users can virtually place short stories, called Spots, around the world and other users, who follow them, see those Spots on an interactive world map when they log in.

Adding a Spot to the map is very easy. Just right click on the map where you want to add a Spot, add your comment or story, add a picture (if you want), and you’re done. You can choose to follow any other users and you can browse the map by location, by people you follow or by Spots most recently added.

If you connect your SpoonerSpot account with a Facebook account your added Spots will also appear in your Facebook time-line.

Confused.com, the UK's most popular price comparison service, has launched a new video creation application called Home Sweet Zombie.

If you enter your address into Home Sweet Zombie then the application creates an animated video that shows zombies taking over your street using Google Maps Street View. Once you have created your own personalised video you can share it with friends via Twitter and Facebook.

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

In the UK British Airways are running a TV advertising campaign, 'London Calling' (YouTube link), in which a plane drives through the streets of London, passing a number of iconic landmarks on its way. The tag-line of the campaign is 'Don't Fly - Support GB'.

British Airways has also created a clever Facebook application in which users can personalise the advert by including scenes involving their own homes. To create your own advert you just need to enter a UK address (non UK residents try the postcode 'RH10 5LS').

After you enter an address the advert includes some additional scenes in which the plane travels down your street and your house can be seen through the plane's window.

The Transat Québec Saint-Malo is an international high-level sailing transoceanic race taking place every four years, from Quebec city, Canada, to Saint-Malo, France.

This year you can watch the race live on Google Maps. The live race map will track each of the multihull and monohull entrants for the duration of the race, which begins on July 22nd. Until the race begins next month the map allows you to replay the 2008 race.

As well as the real-time tracking map of the race there is also an official mobile application. The mobile app will include the live tracking map and also give users access to information layers to better follow and understand the skippers’ moves during the race.

Not only will the mapping application allow users to follow the race, but it will give access to information on all the activities held in Québec City and Saint-Malo before and after the race. It will show where and when program events are taking place and show the locations of the nearest restaurants, bars, hotels, parking lots and ATMs.

As well as introducing traffic conditions in these 7 new countries Google has also improved and expanded coverage to more roads in 19 countries
and regions, where traffic data is already available; the countries
include: Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany,
Israel, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, New Zealand, Puerto Rico, Russia,
Spain, Sweden, Taiwan, and the UK.

This Google Map shows you where live traffic conditions is now available.

Project Noah is a new Google Maps based flood hazard warning map from the Philippines' National Operational Assessment of Hazards and Risks (NOAH).

The map includes a number of weather layers. It is possible to view an animated radar layer from MTSAT. It is also possible to get the latest stream and rain gauge readings from across the country. If you want to know the current weather in the Philippines you can also select to view the Weather Outlook layer on the map.

If you are planning on taking a long road-trip this summer then the Weather Channel's new Hit the Road Google Map is the perfect application to help you plan your trip. Hit the Road not only tells you how to get from A to B but also tells you what what the weather will be like at A, at B, and at all points in between.

If the application shows that there is likely to be rain along your route you can simply drag the route line around the rain and see if the weather is predicted to be better elsewhere. Alternatively you can try adjusting the dates and see if the weather will be better if you start your trip a little later or earlier.

It is also possible to click on the route at any point to add a stop to your journey. If you add a planned stop then suggestions for places to eat and visit (from Yelp) appear below the map. You can select any of the Yelp recommendations to add them to your journey itinerary.

Charity: water has created a Google Map that is tracking in real-time a Yellow Thunder Drilling Rig as it drills water wells in Ethiopia.

The Drilling Rig was funded by users of charity: water and the map allows those donors to visualise the results of their generosity actually in action on the ground. As well as the live Google Map the Yellow Thunder Drilling Rig page includes videos of the drilling rig drilling a water well and links to the rig's own Twitter stream.

The London Bloggers website is a directory of blogs written in and around London. The site includes a clever Google Maps interface to access the listed blogs by location.

The map uses the Google Maps API with the iconic London Underground map. If you click on any of the stations on the map you can view a list of bloggers who are based nearby. It is also possible to browse the over 4,000 blogs listed by individual underground line.

Monday, June 18, 2012

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to have a Jeep parked on your front drive? Thanks to Google Maps Street View and Jeep - The Ultimate Search Engine you can create a virtual snapshot of your house with a Jeep Grand Cherokee parked outside.

To create your own virtual snapshot just enter your address into the Jeep - Ultimate Search Engine. You can then view an animation of a Jeep falling through the sky (using Google Maps satellite view) onto your street.

After the Street View of your house loads you can drag and position the Jeep anywhere in the Street View image. You can rotate the Jeep in 3d, adjust its scale and even choose what color of Jeep you desire.

If you are Australian you could even win a Jeep Grand Cherokee. Every photo created with the application, between 16th May 2012 and 4th July 2012, will be entered into a draw to win a Jeep Grand Cherokee Laredo.

Roadtrip Mixtape is a great way to create a play list for a road-trip containing only music by artists that are from the area you are traveling through. Drive through Boston and you might
hear Aerosmith or Donna Summer. Drive through New Orleans and you might hear Lil Wayne or Dr.
John.

To use the application you just need to add the starting point of your journey and your destination. Your journey is then displayed on a Google Map. Each leg of the journey is represented on the map by a green marker.

If you click on a marker you can view a list of local artists from that stage of the journey. If you select 'Play this leg' you can listen to the music for that leg of the journey. If you are a Rdio subscriber
you will hear the full songs, if not, you can listen to 30 second samples.

iSpot is a website aimed at helping anyone identify anything in nature.

Users can add observations of animals or plants they have spotted to the iSpot website and if necessary request help in identification.
Observations added to iSpot can include a photograph and/or a description of the observation.

The iSpot Observations Map allows users to browse the submitted observations by location, taxonomy and by habitat.

Sunday, June 17, 2012

Today the French voted in the final and decisive round of the Parliament elections.

You can view the results live, as they are announced this evening, on this Google Map,
Google Politique et Elections. The map is color-coded, so it is easy to tell at a glance how each political party has performed.

Users can click on individual electoral areas on the map to view the results in that region. It is also possible to click on the political party names in the map sidebar to view how that party has performed throughout the country.